The 3 Forgotten 1990s Cartoons That Feel Strangely Ready for a Reboot Now

Plenty of 1990s cartoons are still impossible to forget, but a few once-promising titles slipped out of the wider pop culture conversation. The interesting part is that their core ideas do not feel dated at all. If anything, these shows look even more compatible with modern animation than they did the first time around.

1. Exosquad still sounds like the kind of animated sci-fi TV now embraces

If one overlooked 1990s cartoon seems built for a second life, it is Exosquad. Its setup is large-scale science fiction: a future conflict between humanity and the Neosapiens, a race humans created for forced labor. That premise alone gives the series more weight than many animated action shows of its era, but the bigger reason it still stands out is how ambitious it was in execution.

Rather than treating each episode as a self-contained adventure, the show leaned into an ongoing narrative. That choice helped it explore issues that were unusually substantial for animated television at the time, including slavery, changing political loyalties, and the moral and ethical consequences of war. Those are not small background ideas. They are the kind of themes modern viewers often seek out in prestige sci-fi, which makes the series feel less like a relic and more like an early version of where the genre would eventually go.

That is why Exosquad can be described as ahead of its time. It offered intense sci-fi action, but it also aimed for richer storytelling than the simple episodic structure many cartoons were using. Because the series was canceled before it could fully reach its potential, a reboot would not just be an exercise in nostalgia. It could finally give the concept the runway it always seemed to need. With a premise this strong and themes this layered, it is easy to imagine Exosquad finding a far larger audience now.

2. Mummies Alive! has one of the easiest old concepts to update for today

Mummies Alive! may not be the first title people remember when they think of 1990s animation, but that relative obscurity is part of what makes it such a fascinating reboot candidate. The series centered on a team of reanimated Egyptian mummies who had once served as bodyguards to a young prince. In the modern era, they awaken to defend that prince's reincarnation from an evil sorcerer. Each mummy has distinct weapons and abilities, giving the show a team dynamic that still feels familiar in the best way.

The series emerged during the decade's wave of fascination with ancient Egypt, but its appeal was never just about that moment in pop culture. Underneath the period trend was a setup that blends superhero action with fantasy and mythology. That mix remains commercially and creatively viable now, especially when superhero storytelling is still such a major draw. The mythic angle also gives the property a flavor of its own, helping it stand apart from more standard hero teams.

There is also a sense that the original never fully delivered on everything built into the concept. That makes a revival especially tempting. A new animated fantasy-action version could expand the world, sharpen the mythology, and modernize the storytelling without losing the basic hook. For viewers who vaguely remember the title, it would be a rediscovery. For everyone else, it could play like a completely fresh idea that just happens to come from the 1990s.

3. The Pirates of Dark Water only had 21 episodes, and that may be why people still want more

Some short-lived shows vanish because they never connected. The Pirates of Dark Water is remembered for almost the opposite reason. It aired only 21 episodes, yet it is still regarded by some fans as a classic 1990s cartoon and one that deserves another chance. Its fantasy setup is vivid enough that the series has remained a cult favorite even without a long original run.

The story follows Prince Ren, son of the dying king of Octopon, as he travels across a fantasy world aboard his ship, the Wraith. He is joined by an eccentric crew that includes Niddler, a monkey-bird, an ecomancer who can control elements, and a pirate driven by treasure. Their mission is to find the Thirteen Treasures of Rule, which Ren hopes will save his homeland from the Dark Water, a sentient black liquid that is spreading through and consuming the seas.

That is a remarkably robust premise for a cartoon, and it still reads like the foundation for a major fantasy series. The worldbuilding is high-concept, the central threat is visually striking, and the quest structure is easy for audiences to latch onto. Because the original run was so brief, there is also an unfinished quality to the whole thing that naturally invites a comeback. A continuation could build from what was already there, while a full reboot could reintroduce the concept to a wider audience. Nostalgia would help get attention, but a premise this inventive is what would keep people watching. Of the decade's overlooked animated shows, this is one of the clearest cases of a cartoon that feels like it has been waiting for another shot.